‘Rethinking the Ras Tafari Report’ is the title of a panel being featured as a part of the 6th Caribbean Reasonings Conference hosted by The University of the West Indies, Mona in honour of the late Jamaican anthropologist M.G. Smith. The Ras Tafari Report was first published in 1960 by the then University College of the West Indies based on the study of the religious movement conducted by then young scholars, Rex Nettleford, Roy Augier and Michael Garfield (M.G.) Smith. The Report, the first in-depth examination of the Rastafarian movement by local and regional scholars was a milestone in both Rastafarian history and in the University’s attempt to connect with the interests of the wider community. The panel, to be chaired by Vice Chancellor Emeritus and co-author of the Report Rex Nettleford, will also feature University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Professor Robert Hill and Dr. Michael Barnett from the UWI, Mona. Barnett’s presentation will take a retrospective look at the impact of the Ras Tafari Report and Hill will examine the report in the context of Jamaica as a plural society.

The Conference begins with an Opening Ceremony on Wednesday, June 11, 2008 at 6 pm where Harvard Professor, H. Orlando Patterson will deliver the keynote address at the Undercroft, UWI, Mona. The Conference continues with panel discussions on June 12-13, 2008 at 8.30am at the Social Science Lecture Theatre, UWI, Mona. An exhibition on the life and work of distinguished social anthropologist and social theorist M.G. Smith will open on Thursday, June 12, 2008 at the Multifunctional Room of the Main Library, UWI, Mona.